Estancia Rancho E’Cuero is a great choice if you love outdoor adventures and want to experience a stay (or even a day trip) at a traditional family-run ranch in sweeping mountain country only a few hours from Mendoza. While it is further from the wineries of the area, it makes a wonderful combination with a property closer to Uco or Mendoza to give you the gaucho experience as well as amazing food and wine in a superb setting. The Palma family have owned this ranch for 2 centuries and will welcome you like old friends. Alongside great accommodation and gastronomy, this private nature paradise is home to native wildlife such as guanacos, condors, pumas and foxes that inhabit the rolling hills and pristine water creeks wending down from the Nivero del Plata Glacier.

There are two cosy lodges overlooking the Andes (you are higher up at 2400 metres here) each with a few beautifully furnished rooms and plenty of mountain style furniture and locally made rugs for chillier evenings. Old family recipes are used to create imaginative and delicious hearty fare, paired of course with excellent local wines and. The emphasis here is on the great outdoors with lots of opportunities particularly for horse-riding as well as fly fishing, trekking and 4×4 photographic safaris.